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Featured events in Veneto

2017-12-17 - The Maratonina città murata will be held in Cittadella, a medieval walled city in northern Italy, founded in the 13th century as a military outpost of Padua. Thousands of participants will engage on the 13.1 miles event. The start and finish line is within the walls, but the course will wind through the open countryside. www.maratoneticittadellesi.it

2017-11-19 - The Verona marathon will be held in Verona, one of the main tourist destinations in northern Italy, renown for its piazza delle Erbe and the opera sessions held in the Arena, an ancient amphitheatre built by the Romans (the course goes through it!). The city has been awarded World Heritage Site status by Unesco because of its urban structure and architecture. The event features 10k, half and a full marathon distances. www.veronamarathon.it

2017-10-28 - Dubbed a "supercompetitive" event, the Cronoscalata al Cavallo is a trail mountain race, all uphill. The distance is only 1.8k (a little more than a mile) but the altitude difference is one third of a mile (520 meters) with up to 50% degrees inclination - the course winds up the Santa Felicita valley, from Romano d'Ezzelino, near Vicenza, all on the Sentiero del Cavallo (the Horse Trail). At the top of the mountain, the finishers happily strike a cow bell that awaits them to celebrate the feat. www.cronoscalatacavallo.it

2017-10-22 - From Stra, a small town along the Riviera del Brenta (where rich and noble Venetians built their vacation mansions in the 18th century) to the center of Venezia, the Venicemarathon features a unique and unforgettable 26.2 miles course. In the last portion, marathoners run next to the Giudecca Canal and Punta della Dogana, crossing the Grand Canal on a pontoon bridge especially built for the race, and passing by Piazza San Marco and the Palazzo Ducale on a scenic course facing the lagoon. www.venicemarathon.it

2017-09-24 - One of the off-the-beaten-path attractions in the Veneto region is the Albarella island, a place surrounded by unspoilt natural landscapes. The Podistica Isola di Albarella, along with its 10k magnificent course, offers all participants free whole-day access to the island situated in the northern part of the Veneto Regional Park, where the river Po runs into the Adriatic sea, an area rich in flora and fauna, land of unique produce such as clams and radicchio. At the end of the run, participants will enjoy a traditional Rice Party. www.maratonina.org

2017-08-20 - The Camminata dell'uva ("Walk of the grapes") is held in the town of Sarcedo, near Vicenza. The event features several non competitive courses for runners of all levels - 7k, 11k, 15k, and 21k (half marathon) - on hilly roads winding through the local vineyards. Watermelons are usually served at the final refreshment place. www.gpilsorrisosarcedo.it

2017-08-10 - The Alpago sky super 3 is a point-to-point 18.8k trail run taking place in Lamosano, near Belluno, and finishing in Chies d'Alpago. The non-marked course features breath-taking views over the local Prealps, the foothills at the base of the European Alps, with a 1-mile positive elevation. www.dolomitiski-alp.com

2017-08-05 - A fascinating fun run is held in the evening in Treschè Conca, in the province of Vicenza. The race La vaca mora, literally "the black cow" (this is how the local farmers nicknamed the steam locomotive), is a point-to-point 10k along the old local railroad. The course is entirely lit with torches. www.trescheconca.com

2017-07-16 - The Transcivetta Karpos is held in Alleghe, near Belluno. It is a mountain trail run for 2-person teams on a 23.5k panoramic course on the Dolomites mountain range. Snow is expected on several places along the trail. The entry fee is 75 euro. www.transcivetta.it

2017-07-09 - The Antico Troi degli Sciamani is an 80k long distance mountain trail running with a positive difference in altitude of approximately 3300 metres, starting at midnight. The course develops entirely through mountain and forest trails and the conditions can be difficult and sometimes extreme due to cold, wind, rain, fog. Most athletes will take more than twelve hours to complete this ultramarathon. www.fregonatrailfest.it

2017-06-09 - The Dolomiti Extreme Trail in Forno di Zoldo (Belluno), right in the heart of the Dolomites, features three high-altitude events: a 103k ultramarathon, a 53k and a 23k trail runs. It is a magical journey, full of emotions, in an uncontaminated environment declared a Unesco World Heritage site. Due to its circular structure, the Val di Zoldo boasts a ring-shaped route that allows one to touch some of the most spectacular dolomite massifs that crowns the valley: the Mezzodì group, the San Sebastiano and Tamer mountains, the Moiazza, the Civetta, mount Pelmo, the Bosco Nero group, and mount Rite with the "Museum in the Clouds" (Messner Mountain Museum). www.dolomitiextremetrail.com

2017-04-25 - Every April 25 Italy celebrates Liberation Day. In this day, in the town of Cornuda, near Treviso, the Duerocche run is held. It features course of 6k, 12k, and 21k, plus a 48k ultramarathon and a 14k historic walk. www.duerocche.com

2017-04-02 - Venice needs no presentation. The Su e zo per i ponti is a 6k or 12k event. Venezia will be pacifically invaded by thousands of participants. The course will start from piazza San Marco and will bring the participants up and down the bridges of Venice (40 bridges the long course, 13 bridges the short one). While it will be definitely hard on your knees, it is an absolutely memorable running event. www.suezo.it

2017-03-18 - Tough, long, but gorgeous - here is a quick description of the Ultrabericus trail, an ultramarathon held in Vicenza. The course is a 65k loop around the Berici Hills in their entirety, on a trail, with 2,500 meters of elevation change. Not for the faint of heart. www.ultrabericus.it

2017-02-12 - The Giulietta e Romeo halfmarathon takes place in the streets that gave birth to the love of Romeo and Juliet, in the narrow streets that have strengthened their unity and running by the monuments that are true symbols of Shakespeare's tragedy. Combined with the romantic expressions of the "Verona in Love" multiday fair and the incomparable charm of its market stalls arranged in a heart shape in the Piazza dei Signori, the 13.1 mile event is full of great opportunities to spend a special Valentine's Day with your significant other. www.giuliettaeromeohalfmarathon.it

2016-11-01 - Runners passionate about war history should not miss the PerCorri l'Armistizio, a 3k, 5k, 10k, and 20k running event starting from Villa Giusti del Giardino, a villa in Mandria, outside of Padova, notable for being the former residence of King of Italy Vittorio Emanuele III, and site of the signing of the armistice that ended the First World War in 1918. The Armistice of Villa Giusti ended warfare between Italy and Austria-Hungary on the Italian Front during the First World War. In the room where the negotiations were conducted and the armistice was signed, the furniture remains just as it was on that day. www.usaclipadova.org

2016-10-09 - The race La 10 di Bardolino is held in Bardolino, a town near Verona on the eastern shore of the Garda lake, founded in 983 aD. The course is a 10k loop (5k for women participants) on the streets in the medieval center. The entry fee is 20 euro with local products as a final prize for all finishers. www.la10dibardolino.it

2016-07-24 - Only 2k in lenght, the Vertical Km in Pieve di Livinallongo, near Belluno, is an uphill point-to-point event reaching the top of Col di Lana. The course features stunning views while paying homage to the tragic history these mountains witnessed during World War I. Dubbed "Col di Sangue" ("Blood Mountain"), the area was the scene of heavy fighting between Austria and Italy. It is now a memorial to the War in the Dolomites, and a chapel stands on the summit, along with the remains of a barracks and trenches. There is also a small war museum. www.v-km.it

2015-02-14 - Runners will have the possibility of combining an early run in Venice with the local Carnevale (a festival famed for its elaborate masks) by running the Progetto 5.30. This project articulates on a series of event in the major Italian cities. Runners start at 5:30 in the morning to run at dawn a 5.3k course. "Fritoe" (raisins and pinenuts fritters), "galani" (fried dough) and "vin brulé" (hot spiced wine) will be served to all runners. www.run530.it